Did you know? Since 2004, every April 15th Baxter Tax Consulting holds a drawing and gives away a dinner and movie tickets for two (a $100 dollar value)! This is just for referring someone to Baxter Tax Consulting (friends, family and co-workers). It’s never to late to refer someone you know!

Estimated Tax Payments are Due:

April 15th

June 15th

September 15th

January 15th of the following year

When using the Payment Vouchers – Each estimated tax payment should be paid by check or money order AND accompanied by Form 1040-ES payment voucher. If you made estimated tax payments last year you should receive copies of the 2017 Form 1040-ES payment vouchers preprinted with your name, address, and social security number by mail. Using the preprinted vouchers will speed up processing and reduce the chance of error.

If you did not pay estimated taxes last year, but will this year, you will have to get the tax Form 1040-ES payment voucher from your accountant or the Internet. After you make your first estimated tax payment, a Form 1040-ES package with preprinted vouchers will be mailed to you.

Form W-2 – All W-2 & 1099 Forms MUST be mailed out by employers on or before January 31stof each year. You will receive a separate W-2 Form from each employer for whom you have worked. If you have not received your W-2 Forms by February 15th contact your employer or the IRS.

Form 1099 – You should receive your 1099 forms by February 15th of each year.

Underpayment Penalty – If you did not pay enough tax either through withholding or by making estimated tax payments, you will have an underpayment of estimated tax due AND you may have to pay a penalty fee.

Mandatory for this year – Coming in to have your taxes done? Due to new IRS and State regulations, the following information is needed for the completion of your tax return and for every person being claimed on your return.

Additionally, every person claimed on your return must provide copies of at least two of the following items:

Driver’s License

Social Security Card

Birth Certificate

Passport

Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC) – If you are claiming the EITC credit from any of the categories below, you must provide two different documents for each qualifying individual:

Residency

School records or statement

Landlord or property management statement

Healthcare provider statement

Medical records

Childcare provider

Social service records or statements

Employer statement

Place of worship statement

Indian tribal official statement

Disability of qualifying child

Doctor Statement

Other healthcare provider

Social services agency statement

Documents or other information

Business license

1099 forms

Bank statements

Taxpayer summary of expenses

Schedule C – If you are filling a schedule C you must bring the following:

All bank statements

1099 K

1099’s

Proof of all deductions

Mileage logbook

Phone/Cell bills

All receipts for meals and entertainment

Proof of all schedule C deductions

What’s new for this tax season?

The following summarizes important changes for the tax year:

Information reporting about health coverage

If you or someone in your family had health coverage in 2017, the provider of that coverage is required to send a Form 1095-A, 1095-B, or 1095-C (with Party III completed) by January 31, 2018, that lists individuals in your family who were enrolled in the coverage and shows their months of coverage. Use this information to help complete your return. You do not need to attach these forms to your return. You may have had health care coverage for some or all of 2017 even it you didn’t receive a form with this information.

Information reporting about employer offer of coverage

If you or someone in your family was an employee in 2017, the employer may have sent you a Form 1095-C. Part II of Form 1095-C will show whether your employer offered you health insurance coverage and information about that offer. If you purchased health insurance coverage for 2017 through the Health Insurance Marketplace and wish to claim the premium tax credit, this information will help you see if you are eligible for the credit. You do not need to attach Form 1095-C to your return. If you do not wish to claim the premium tax credit for 2017, you do not need the information in Part II. Form 1095-C may include information in Part III if you, or others in your family, enrolled in an employer’s health plan.

Premium Tax Credit

If you or a family member enrolled in health insurance through the Marketplace and advance payments of the premium tax credit were made to your insurance company to reduce your monthly premium payment, attach Form 8962 to your return to reconcile (compare) the advance payments with your premium tax credit for the year, which you figure on Form 8962. The Marketplace is required to send Form 1095-A by January 31, 2018, listing the advance payments and other information you need to figure your premium tax credit. Use Form 1095-A to complete Form 8962. Attach Form 8962 to your return. Do not attach Form 1095-A to your return.

Due date of return

File your tax return by April 17, 2018. The due date is April 17th instead of April 15th because of the Emancipation Day holiday in the District of Columbia – even if you do not live in the District of Columbia.

Standard mileage rates

The 2017 rate for business use of your vehicle is 53.5 cents a mile. The 2017 rate for use of your vehicle to get medical care or to move is 17 cents a mile.

My Social Security Account

Social security beneficiaries can now get a variety of information from the SSA website with a my Social Security account.

Expired tax benefits

At the time this publication was prepared for printing, certain tax benefits had expired. These included the following:

Tuition and fees deduction.

Deduction for educator expenses in figuring adjusted gross income.

Deduction for state and local general states taxes.

The exclusion from income of qualified charitable distributions from IRAs.

Credit for certain non-business energy property.

Deduction for mortgage insurance premiums.

You can find out whether legislation extended these and other tax benefits to allow you to claim them on your 2017 return.

Delayed refunds for returns claiming certain credits.

Due to changes in the law, the IRS can’t issue refunds before February 15, 2017, for returns that claim the earned income credit or the additional child tax credit. This delay applies to the entire refund, not just the portion associated with these credits. Although the IRS will begin releasing refunds for returns that claim these credits on February 15, because of the time it generally takes banking or financial systems to process deposits, it is unlikely that your refund will arrive in your bank account or on a debit card before the week of February 27 (assuming your return has no processing issues and you elect direct deposit).

Refund on a late filed return

If you were due a refund but you did not file a return, you generally must file your return within 3 years from the date the return was due (including extensions) to get that refund.

Frivolous tax returns

The IRS has published a list of positions that are identified as frivolous. The penalty for filing a frivolous tax return is $5,000.